Page 53 of The Doctor's Twins

“Yup, that will do the trick.”

“I’m not going to reek of fish guts when today is over, am I?”

I laughed at the look on her face.

“You’re a doctor. Surely, the smell of fish guts isn’t the worst you’ve ever encountered?”

“Oh, good. So, you brought scrubs and gloves, did you?” she smirked.

“I have something better,” I said and pulled out the chest wader and wading boots I’d packed for her.

“Had that lying around in the garage, did you?”

“A good fisherman is always prepared.”

“Exactly how deep into the river are you planning on luring me dressed in that monkey suit?”

“Jump in, worry wart. I’ll get you back home in one piece.”

“Oh, I’m not worried.”

“Good.”

I reached over and pushed play on the CD. A song sprang to life. I watched Peyton out of the corner of my eye as she listened to the lyrics of the song.

“What are we listening to?” she hollered with laughter.

“I thought Craig Campbell’s ‘Fish’ would get us in the mood,” I laughed. “What do you think?”

“Oh, it’s official. You’re crazy,” she said through her laughter.

“You better believe it.”

By the time we arrived at the fishing spot, Peyton and I had learned the words to the song and belted out the chorus. It was wonderful seeing her so relaxed. Her laughter was genuine, and she appeared more relaxed than I’d ever seen her.

“Okay, rookie. Time to suit up,” I said once we’d parked and got out of the car.

I helped Peyton with the chest wader before she slid her feet into the wading boots.

“You look adorable,” I said and kissed her on the cheek.

“Point me to where the big fish are,” she chuckled.

“Slow down there, Doc. Have you tried fly fishing before?”

“No, but I’ve seen it on TV.”

“We’re going to start on the bank of the river first. If we just blunder into the water, we may frighten the bass away.”

“But aren’t the fish in the middle of the water?”

“You’d be surprised how many big ones I’ve caught from the bank. Don’t worry, we’ll wade in a bit later.”

“Okay.

“Here. Let me show you how to put the fly on the hook.”

“We’re talking artificial fly here, are we?” Peyton asked with a scrunched-up nose.

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